An Unnecessary Evil?

Recently, one reader eloquently offered a third explanation (I think we are way beyond the number 3, but I get the point) for the motives behind The Rotten Apple Series by drawing parallels between ART and Magick. Iamaphoney has offered several videos that seem to suggest that Paul McCartney was involved in the occult. But I think it is fair to say that Iamaphoney's videos don't appear to be from a perspective of one who is outraged that Paul McCartney or his "just a good replica" would be a practitioner of "Magic with a K." In fact, Iamaphoney seems to embrace Thelema and Aleister Crowley himself to a certain degree. I have been repeatedly given warnings with peace and love about the time and energy I have spent promoting and analyzing Iamaphoney and his Rotten Apple videos. Is it possible that Iamaphoney is not really going after Paul McCartney, but is instead using Paul McCartney to go after us? Is Iamaphoney using me and you to spread a belief in Thelema? I find that to be a humorous thought because we are not that big of a group, and I have personally not seen a shred of evidence that suggests that any two people who visit this site can agree on anything (and that includes subscribing to the same anti-religion). Of course, I was the guy who was criticized recently for suggesting that we all go out for pizza. That was actually a face saving measure that I employed after Iamafunny let that cat out of the bag. [Is that the "face saving" thing that you were talking about Rian? I'm still a fan of yours]

But this is not the first time that someone has suggested that watching Rotten Apple videos can be bad for you. There have been stories about sigil magic, mind control, and some reasonable concerns, unfortunately often leading to illogical leaps and unfounded conclusions by others. I admit, that in order for Iamaphoney to be a guilty pleasure for me, there must be some guilt. But, I don't think that all of the Rotten Apple videos together are nearly as bad for my soul as the movie "Satan's Bed" starring Yoko Ono, which I watched recently for "research purposes." And I don't think that Iamaphoney has done nearly as much harm to Paul McCartney's reputation as people like Heather Mills and even Yoko Ono.

If Rotten Apple videos are causing you to have anxiety-producing dreams or unwanted thoughts, please don't watch them. The reactions to the Trilogy of long form Iamaphoney videos lead me to believe that people are not sitting in front of Rotten Apple videos all day long. I started this blog because I was intrigued by the sudden transformation of amateur videos into something so polished that some even believed McCartney himself was involved. Thelema Schmelema, I got pulled in by the prospect of finding out more about the four ARTists that I have adored collectively and individually since I first heard "I Want To Hold Your Hand."

But the argument that was presented suggesting that "ART = Magick" is certainly worth exploring. I agree that "The Rotten Apple" and "The Right Album" and other curious capitalizations within words beginning with T, R, or A suggest that the Iamaphoney is intentionally referring to the backwards spelling of the word "ART." ART does seem to be the way that souls communicate. And ART certainly does influence people's thoughts, emotions and actions. This is an example of a video that was created for the purpose of influencing people. Is this Magick?



There is no question in my mind that ART has power and can manipulate. But that doesn't make it evil. But could ART be used for evil? I knew as soon as I started using money that ART was trying to influence me to spend it. I knew as soon as I started making my own ART that I would have to make unwanted compromises if I wanted to share my ART with others. Is that the kind of evil we are talking about? Believe me, playing in a cover band or writing songs to order is a little bit like selling your soul to the devil.

Is it really possible that Paul is into Magick? Most reasonable people would say of course not, but what do reasonable people know? I had the pleasure of meeting a reasonable person recently named Ken Mansfield.



Ken was the guy wearing the white raincoat on the Apple rooftop during the Beatles final live performance as a group. He ran the American branch of Apple Records, worked with the Beatles from 1965 onwards, led a promotional tour for Apple artist Jackie Lomax, became a major record producer for several artists including Outlaws Waylon, Willie and Jessi, assembled Ringo's band for the "Time Takes Time" album (without credit), hit rock bottom, re-emerged as a Christian and wrote three terrific books that he autographed for me.



Ken is often invited by churches to share his testimony of how despite having all of the advantages one would expect living the Rock and Roll Lifestyle, he felt empty inside until he hit rock bottom and committed himself to a life as a Christian.



Ken's presentations about his faith journey are usually split into three parts. In Part 1, he shares his reminiscences of his time in the music business with a heavy emphasis on his work with the Beatles. Part 2 is Question and Answer with the host. Part 3 features questions from the audience. Interestingly, in the session that I attended, the very first question from the church host in Part 2 dealt with "Paul Is Dead." Ken responded with the typical "You can gather evidence to prove Hitler was a nun if you look hard enough." I have looked and I have not found any evidence to suggest that Hitler was a nun. If I find any, I will make YouTube videos about it and you can write a blog about me. Ken followed with the "American Explanation" of the "I Buried Paul" at the end of "Strawberry Fields Forever." Like Allen Klein said in 1969, Ken thought that John meant that his sound "buried" Paul's sound in the mix. This of course conflicts with explanations given by Derek Taylor, as well and Paul McCartney and John Lennon himself. A member of the audience mentioned the "Cranberry Sauce" explanation. Ken said he was aware of that, but that it didn't make any sense. Um hum.

The "Paul Is Dead" subject reappeared in Part 3 when a member of the audience commented that Ken described in his books that even though he was not a fan of the Beatles' music initially, his appreciation for it grew over time. When Ken acknowledged the accuracy of the comment, the audience member asked what Ken's take was on people, many of whom are Christians, who suggest that there is something sinister in the music of the Beatles. Ken paused reflectively and said, "There was a darkness in their music at a certain point because of various things that they were doing at the time, but it wasn't sinister. They were nice people."

But what about Mr. McCartney? Is it sacrilegious to ask the question, "Could he be a devotee of Aleister Crowley?" No one has explained away to my satisfaction the presence of Aleister Crowley in the background screen when Paul plays "Helter Skelter" on tour.



And why does that one segment that initially appeared on Paul's Official Channel for the new "Band On The Run" Remastered CD, and is included in the accompanying DVD seem like an Iamaphoney video?



And why does the "original" video for the song "Band On The Run" itself contain such strange imagery?



And that interview where Paul refers to "Magick with a K" is very strange to me.

And I must admit that I find the cover of Paul's "Liverpool Sound Collage" a little disturbing.



Isn't it also interesting that the George Harrison spoken phrase from the recording session for the song "Think For Yourself," that Paul chose to incorporate repeatedly in the Collage, happened to be "Do What You Want To Do," which sure seems to me to be synonymous with Crowley's famous phrase, "Do What Thou Wilt"???

In spite of the fragments of evidence to the contrary, I am still content to agree with Ken Mansfield comment that the Beatles were nice people, and not sinister at all. I am inclined to believe the same about Iamaphoney.



I am told that the next update for subscribers will be on December 7.

Emilio Lari Facebook Post

There was an unusual comment on Emilio Lari's Facebook page after a Beatles Link:



Google Translation from Italian to English: Emilio Lari was and is a great photographer. Intuitive and sophisticated gave us pictures that tell the long process of many of us. Soon everyone will see a big surprise. I have only one worry: he has used my image. Patience :-)

Be sure to subscribe to the Iamaphoney fan page on Facebook to get some great information that you can't find anywhere else.

Unbelievably, there is a YouTube channel with the name EmilioLari that posted a video in 2008. It is the scene for "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" from the movie "Help." There is a quick cut of an Apple logo around the middle. How many other Iamaphoney videos that we haven't seen are still hidden somewhere on YouTube?

I think most people will understand that there is an embargo on the previews that Iamaphoney sent me, which included unreleased video that will likely be part of his subscription service. I am not the only one who has received these previews. I would imagine that they went to several others who have helped him along the way. It would be foolish of me to bite the hand that is feeding me information that I have been seeking for years. I will do my best to be as complete and accurate as possible. Don't worry. No BIG revelation yet. Don't succumb to Superstone disease.

Emilio Lari

Thanks to commenters, who seem to know a lot more about this stuff than I do, we have identified the individual lovingly referred to as "Eurodude" in the Rotten Apple videos. He is the Italian movie stills photographer Emilio Lari. According to Wikipedia, Lari "bluffed" his way on to the set of "A Hard Days Night" by impersonating a photographer from a magazine. From there he developed a pretty impressive resume taking shots for several motion pictures including the Beatles' film "Help" and the 1968 Ringo Starr film "Candy."



It is possible that the "revelation" of this individual's identity was a calculated plan by Iamaphoney. I say that because one of the things I received in my preview package was raw footage of interviews with the individual who I now realize was Emilio Lari. Guess what. None of the interview footage appears to have been taken out of context. He may be lying. He may be acting. But, he is not a victim of Iamaphoney out of context editing.

Lari is usually seen with a shot of Paul from the movie "Help" nearby. In one of the segments he commented on the difference in height between the original Paul and the replacement.



Even if this man is not acting, that doesn't mean that the original Paul McCartney was killed in a car accident and was replaced by the devil. But this character has certainly made things more interesting. I suggest we fasten our seat belts.

What if...

I used the term "Historical Fiction" or something like that a while back when describing my take on Iamaphoney and the Rotten Apple Series. There is something different about the Beatles artistic output that in my view puts them way above all of the others. Stanley Milgram, the psychologist suggested that the reason the "Paul Is Dead" rumor became so prominent was because the Beatles output had the rare combination of ambiguity and social importance. Others like the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd came close, but none had fueled imaginations of obsessed fans as much as the Beatles.

I think of the Beatles as the Rock and Roll equivalent of Stanley Kubrick. There is so much beauty in the work, the fans become part of the game by being the interpreters. I believe that in both cases, Kubrick and the Beatles (collectively and individually) played along by intentionally providing "clues" to make their art a two-way interactive process. That's why Beatle albums and Kubrick films get better and better with time. In Iamaphoney terminology, I believe it is a shaggily harmless game that will continue long after the principles and their first generation fans are gone. The art is that good.

This is the situation in which Iamaphoney (and several others) emerged. And like the artists themselves, these interpreters continue to play the game and take the art in new directions. I believe the artists themselves find the game amusing as the interpreters develop all kinds of theories based on the trinkets and puzzles found in the art. I just don't think you can play this game with any other artists of this generation as well as you can with the Beatles and Kubrick. Hell, you can even connect the two of them if you want.

So the Iamaphoney scenario is one of the better ones to emerge out of this. The thing that makes him so compelling is that he is an artist himself, or at least he had the ability to form a company of artists, of which many of us may be a part of one day. And the thing that is great about it is the fact that, although highly unlikely, there is at least a ghost of a chance that some of this could be true. I'm not talking about Paul being the devil, which I believe is an "interpretation" of Iamaphoney's art anyway.

But what if Iamaphoney was a guy who became obsessed with finding out the truth about the "Paul Is Dead" rumor? And what if he was able to raise enough money and resources to travel the globe? And what if he actually did find the missing diary of Mal Evans? And what if he found a person who did actually know the truth? Like this guy...



What if...

The Rotten Apple Movie is Here!

In a way we have all been invited to be a part of the Iamaphoney experience. Think of it like the John Lennon "You are the Plastic Ono Band" campaign. Yes, we may have to buy a ticket, but we have also been handed a tambourine at the door. We are all Iamaphoney now. The great thing is that I still have all of my memories. I basically feel much like the same person I was yesterday. The only thing that is really different is that this blog is no longer free. It now costs $5.00. I don't need the money now. In fact, you all have a little over two years to raise it. Just bring it with you to Vegas when we meet. Obviously, the more of you who contribute, the less you will have to pay toward the five dollars. I would like all of it, or at least some of it in U.S. currency. That way we can immediately put it towards the pizza.

The Rotten Apple 2007 Movie consists of some of the best moments from the first 35 videos from the Rotten Apple series presented in the slickest documentary format yet. Although some of the captions might make you cringe a little, it is neatly edited and serves as a nice review of the early days of Iamaphoney. We all agree that the videos became more "trippy" at one point, but seeing these early clips edited together shows a surprising continuity from the developmental days of the series to where we are now.

From the glimpses I have seen, there are some exciting things to come. In my little introductory package, I was able to see some items in a new context and got some of my questions answered. The BIG revelation, if there is one, has not been presented to me. But I am quite happy with what I have seen so far and will be reporting on it in the coming weeks. I would imagine that others who have contributed to the Iamaphoney legend have seen the same things I have seen or probably more, so I expect that they will share their impressions too.

For now we have the full length Rotten Apple 2007. As far as I can tell, no pop stars were harmed during the making of this film. Enjoy this quite entertaining piece.

Is it time?

Possibly.

I have been contacted by Iamaphoney for the first time in a very long time. My hope and expectation is that some of what we have been enjoying for free for years will soon be commercially available in high quality. Some of my readers (if I still have readers) may cry foul, but I expect that some great stuff that we have not seen before may come out of it. So, I for one, am excited.

Is Your Breath Baited?

UPDATE: Sorry. I'm getting rid of these links for now until I figure out what is going on with these rogue scripts. My apologies. Go to the Iamaphoney YouTube page to link to the Winged Beatle site.



The Winged Beatle ARE3RA